Managing a hotel is a complex task. From administration to responding to guest needs, the number of tasks involved can be very challenging. However, technological developments have provided a solution to simplify this process, namely through the use of hotel management applications. In this article, we will explore various aspects of hotel management apps, their benefits, and how they can improve the guest experience.

What is a hotel management app?

According to KelolaPro, hotel management applications are software specifically designed to assist hotel managers in carrying out various aspects of their operations. This includes reservation management, room inventory, finance, and customer service. This application aims to automate many administrative tasks so that hotel managers can focus more on guest service and business development.

Benefits of Hotel Management Applications

a. Efficient Reservation Management

One of the main benefits of a hotel management app is its ability to manage reservations quickly and efficiently. With the integrated calendar feature, hotel staff can easily view room availability and make reservations. This reduces the risk of double-booking and ensures each guest gets a room that suits his or her preferences.

b. Inventory and Finance Tracking

This application allows hotel managers to track room inventory, restaurant stock, and other assets in real-time. Additionally, financial management and guest payments can be automated, reducing the risk of errors and ensuring greater accountability.

c. Better Guest Service

Hotel management apps allow staff to document guest preferences, such as favourite foods or preferred rooms. With this data, hotels can provide more personalised and satisfying service. The automatic notification feature also helps guests with check-in, check-out, or other important information.

d. Analysis and Reports

The app generates valuable data, such as occupancy rates, sales, and guest feedback. With the help of this data analysis, hoteliers can identify trends and make better decisions to optimise their hotel operations.

Important Features of Hotel Management Applications

Reservation Management: Makes it easy to record and manage reservations, including changes, cancellations, and rescheduling.

b. Fast Check-in and Check-out: Allows guests to check-in and check-out quickly and easily.

c. Room Management: Monitor room availability, maintenance, and cleaning.

d. Restaurant Management: Manage restaurant reservations, food inventory, and staff scheduling.

e. Payments and Invoicing: Allows guests to pay online and generates automatic invoices.

f. Guest Feedback Tracking: Collect and analyse guest feedback to improve service.

g. Financial Integration: Connecting with financial systems to manage payments and financial reports

h. Data Security: Ensure the security of guest data and other important information.

Recommendations for the Best Hotel Management Applications

1.Tomps Building

Tomps Building is a management system that provides comprehensive service solutions for managing tenants, buildings, and technicians. Tomps Building has various interesting features, including building data management, which helps data centres manage data, buildings, payment processes, and maintenance information. Tomps Building has three different solution applications, namely the management application, tenant application, and technician application.

2.Little Hotelier

The Little Hotelier application is designed to help manage all aspects of the growing accommodation business, providing convenience in business management. This application is available on the App Store and Play Store. The Little Hotelier app provides a variety of features, including reservation management, website creation, and a channel manager to promote rooms on various booking platforms, such as Booking.com, among others. In addition, this application also allows automatic updating of the number of available rooms when a booking is made, making business management easier.

3.Djubo

Djubo is an application that provides solutions for managing and improving the customer experience and online hotel sales. This application allows you to improve your hotel management system, manage reservations, use channel managers, send push notifications, manage payments and invoices, place advertisements for your hotel, manage hotel reviews, and analyse competitors by comparing prices around lodging locations.

4.Open Hotel

The hospitality industry is attracted to hotel management software because of its ability to provide a wide range of features and highly detailed and in-depth reports. OpenHotel, for example, puts a heavy focus on flexibility with several standout features, such as the use of drag-and-drop graphics for room setup and tabs that track rates and the availability of rooms that need cleaning. Not only that, OpenHotel is also equipped with very comprehensive payment and booking processing tools, which make it possible to block and set booking limits efficiently.

5.eZee

eZee Frontdesk is designed to support property management from small to large hotel scales, covering all operational aspects. The software is designed with an easy-to-use interface and has a support team available 24/7 to handle any system issues that may arise. In several reviews of this software, it is stated that eZee Frontdesk has a variety of features and many search options.

Case Study: Hotel Management Application Success

One of the successful case studies in implementing hotel management applications is "Sunrise Hotel Group". This group faces various challenges in managing a number of their hotels spread across several locations. They decided to adopt a comprehensive hotel management application to address the problems they were facing. As a result, they reported significant improvements in operational efficiency. They can serve guests better, make their experience more satisfying, and ultimately increase their room occupancy rates.

Challenges in Implementing Hotel Management Applications

Implementing a hotel management application can be a challenging process. One of the main challenges is the initial costs required for application procurement, staff training, and integration with existing systems. For small hotels or small business owners, these costs can be a significant burden. Additionally, training staff in application use requires extra time and effort, which can disrupt daily operations. Integrating applications with existing systems, such as financial systems or room equipment, can also be complicated, especially if existing software is incompatible. Additionally, ensuring that the app complies with applicable regulations, such as the protection of guests' personal data, is critical but often requires changes in hotel policies and procedures that can be difficult to implement. Not only that, changes in organisational ways of working and culture can also create resistance and require effective change management. However, with careful planning and a commitment to overcoming these challenges, the use of hotel management applications can provide significant long-term benefits.

Conclusion

Hotel management applications have proven themselves to be invaluable tools for optimising hotel operations and enhancing the guest experience. With significant benefits such as efficient reservation management, better guest service, and data analysis, these applications can help hotels stay competitive in an increasingly cutthroat industry. While challenges exist, with careful planning and the right investment, using a hotel management app can bring many benefits in the long run.

Sources:

KelolaPro. (2022, December 24). Apa itu Aplikasi Manajemen Hotel? - KelolaPro. KelolaPro. https://kelolapro.com/aplikasi-manajemen-hotel/

Nisa Arifia. (2023, April 27). 6 Rekomendasi Aplikasi Manajemen Hotel Terbaik untuk Mengelola Bisnis Penginapan. Dailysocial.id; Dailysocial. https://dailysocial.id/post/aplikasi-manajemen-hotel-terbaik 

Novi Herawati. (2022, November 18). 5 Rekomendasi Software Manajemen Hotel Terbaik di Indonesia. BusinessTech HashMicro. https://www.hashmicro.com/id/blog/5-rekomendasi-software-hotel-indonesia-terbaik/#b